Pressed-metal automobile body



March 24, 1931..

J. LEDWHNKA PRESSED METAL AUTOMOBILE BODY Filed 0ct.,29, 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet l ml i INVENTOR. JosEPH LEDWINKA.

w A TTORNEY.

ham,

March 24,. 1931.

J. LEDWINKA PRESSED METAI; AUTOMOBILE BODY Filed Oct. 29, 1.926..

4 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 2.

lNVENfOR.

905mm LEDWINKAQ March 24, 1931. LEDWINKA 1,797,917

PRESSED METAL AUTOMOBILE BODY Filed Oct. 29, 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVEN-TOR, JOSEPH LEDwmKA ATTORNEY.

March 24, 1931. Y J. LEDWINKA 9" PRESSED METAL AUTOMOBILE BODY Filled Oct. 29, 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 F 3 INVENTOR.

- fosepn LEDwmKm ATTORNEY.

v Patented Mar; 24, 1931 UNITED STATES PA ENT oer-Ice JOSEPH LEDWINKA, or PHILADELPHIA; PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOB TO EDWARD 'o. I

BUDID MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF RATION OF PENNSYLVANIA PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, A Conrorn ssEn-NErAnAUmomo IL'u BODY J Application filed October at; 192p. Serial No. 145,071.

The aim of automobile body engineers has been for some time directed to the reduction of the weight of such bodies without sacrifice strength, to the elimination of bulky I posts in closed carswhich obstruct vision of the occupants, to the reduction and simplification of the number of parts going into the manufacture of such bodies, to the simplification of the joints without sacrifice of strength, to the formation of the various parts to permit ready assemblyin unit. as-

semblies which can be readily joined in the final assembly by complemental joint forma tions which when united, provide a complete body structure of great strength and rigidity,

and which is especially adapted to take the strains and stresses to which such bodies are subjected in use.

The efforts of the engineers 'along'these lines has shown that a body of metal stampings and, particularly, a body of sheet steel sta npings, is peculiarly adapted for the attainment of these and other ends, and it is the general object of the present invention I to provide a construction of body made of sheet steel stampings whereby these various aims are fulfilled in a very high de ree.

Other and further objects and a vantages will become apparent from-the following detailed description taken'with the accompany- Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view on the line 66ofFig.5;

Figs. 7 to 15 are detail sectional views taken on the correspondingly numbered lines of Fig. 1

Fig. 16 is a detail sectional view on the i (line 16- 16 of Fig. 17;

Figs. 17 to 23 are detail sectional views taken, respectively numbered lines of Fig."2;

Fig. 24 is an enlarged detail view of the parts shown within the circle 24 in F i 3;

Figs. 25 and26 are .detail sectiona views on the correspondingly numbered lines .of Fig. 24;

Fig sr27 to 38 are detailvsectional views.

taken on-the correspondingly numbered lines of Fig. 3.-

In the drawings similar reference numerals refer to similar parts in the several views,

and the sectional viewsappearas if viewed in the direction of the arrows at the ends of the section lines.

The automobile body structure the sedan on the correspondingly type selected for illustration of one embodiment of this invention, comprises a cowl unit shown generally in Fig. 1, an intermediate unit shown generall in Fig. 2 and a tonneau unit shown general y in Fig.3, which units are adapted tobe finally assembled to form of the the bottom of the body to the roof and connected to the opposite-rear edges of the cowlvpanel,' the shroud pan 42, the lower windshield header 43 joined to the rear edge of.

the completed body.

The cowl unit consists generall cowl panel 40, the A posts extending from the cowlpanel andthe A posts, the peak panel 44 joining the tops of the A posts, the instrument board support 45 and the side braces 46 extending between the A-posts and the forward side edges of the cowl panel and shroud pan.-

The cowl (panel, as shown, is made in two pieces. joine the hood, and at the front of said offset, with an inwardly extending flange 47. The side at the lap, as at 41 by a top I joint, the lapped edges being welded to gether. It is formed'at its forward edge with an inward offset to receive the rear edge of lower central portion,

' zontal edge to the to of'the' sill 52. The

forward ends as at 48, Fig. 8 and the three thicknesses of metal so formed by the cowl panel, shroud pan and brace flange 48 are welded or otherwise rigidly secured tofi'gether. The shroud pan is cut away at the the u per edge of the opening so formed being flanged inwardly and downwardly, as at 49. .Along its upper .rear edge the cowl panel is formed-with an inward flange 50 which is joined to the forward downwardly extending arm of the 2 section header 43 as by welding. The cowl panelis flanged inwardly at 51 along its-bottom edges, these flanges be-" ing lapped under and secured, as by welding, to the bottom flanges of the side sills 52.

The A posts are of substantially channel section throughout, the channel presenting 'inwardly and comprising the front side wall 53, the rear side wall 54 and the bottom wall 55. The bottom wall is provided with a rabbet along its rear edge for the reception of the usual door over ap. The rear side edges ,of the cowl panel are correspondingly offsets at 56 t0 fit within the ofl'set-on the posts in which they are secured, as by spot welding. This provides a neat and strong joint between-cowl panel and A post.

The A posts extend downwardly on the has a rearwardly extendin tab\or flange secured as by rivetingor welding to the bottom wall of the adjacent sill 52. To further strongly brace and secure the bottom of the -A,post to the sill a trian ular bracket stamping 58 is secured through an outwardl' projecting' flange 59 at its rear vertical e go to the forward wall of the post and through an inwardly projecting flange-60 along its horibracket may be secure to the postby weldin and to the sill by riveting, as shown. To

still further anchor the post to the sill and reinforcejhe lower portion thereof, a" channel member 58 is nested within the side walls 53, 54' and secured thereto as by welding.

The bottom of this channel is extended be- 'yond the" sides and bent inwardly, at 58" to I overlie the top ofthe sill to which it is secured by rivets.

' That pbrtion-of the sill which extends forwardly into the cowl has the gfeater ortion of its lower side flange 61, whic is wi er than at its outer edge to follow the contour of the bottom of the cowl panel. In this region the cowl panel is flanged under'f-and secured to this plate instead of to the sill directly. This construction .makesit unnecessary to bend the sill to: the precise contour of the lower 4 ed 'ofthe cowl. The forward end. of the outside of the sill having their lower ends: flush with the bottom of the sill. Each post' the upper flange 62, oflset upwardly to re-- ceive 1n the offset a plate'63 flanged upwardly sil extends into proximity to the shroud'pan 42 and a combined bracket'andtoe boardsup-' ..port '64having a body of generally right triangular shape joins the end of, the sill to the forward reinforced edge'of the cowl. This bracket has flanges 65, 67, 66 extending inwardly from its body on its'rearwardly and downwardly inclined top edge, its horizontal bottom ed e and its, vertical front edge,

construction provides a very securejoint between the sill and the front of the cowlunit but additional strength is attained by securingone arm of an angle bracket 68 to the lower flange 61 of the sill and having part of its other arm lying against and secured to the shroud pan and a further ofi'set part of said other arm lying against the inside of flange 66 of the toe board support bracket and secured thereto as by welding. This laminated metal joint at the forward lower edges of the cowl provides a very strong construction at this point.

The rear side wall 54 of the A post is pro vided, as shown in Figs. 7, 10, 11' with'a forwardly extending flange 54 which serves not' onl .to strengthen the post but also as a convenient means-for the securing of other body elements. For example, as shown in Fig-11,

the brace 46 has its rear edge overlapping the inner side wall of this flange 54' and is' secured thereto by welding or otherwise.

Also, the instrument board supporting stam'ping 45 has its ends oflfset as at 45 to nest within the angle formed by the side wall- 54 and flange 54 of the post. To form a strong box' girder construction the upper'edge "of the instrument board support is clinched over the inner u wardly extendin header 43 o .Z-cross section, edge is provided with a forwardly ofi'set ,flange, Fig. 1, to'which is secured the instrument board stampin 69. At the ends, this stamping. may be additionally supported fromthe A posts in any suitablemanner, as desired.

to it, as shown in Fig. 10, the paneling which Above the belt line the A post has applied 7 arm of-the while the lower' closely hugs the outside and'forward walls of the post and closes the inner open side of the channel to provide finish and a side of the frame for the windshield. To this latter'end the paneling isbentback upon itself at 71 and then rearwardly flanged and again bent back upon itself at 72, -to-form a' smooth edge surface and finish. nAlong'this bent back edge72 it is secured,as by weld-.

" he header 43 is formed with a bead, and

' in to the flange 54' of the post.

I the paneling 70in the'region of the header is similarly beaded to merge the head of the header continuously into the bead on the door (not shown) The end of the'hea'der abuts the inner edge of the paneling70, as

shown in Fig. 7, and is secured to the post by an offset plate 73 welded to the inner sides of the end of the header and the forward wall of the Apost, respectively.

The substantially channel shaped peak panel 44 having-the forwardly extending flange at its upper end connects the A posts at the top and issecured thereto by a channel shaped bracket 74" nested, as shown in Figs. 4 and 4a within the ends of the channel 44 and secured thereto and extending beyond the ends of the channel to fit against and be secured to the inner sidesof the forward flanges 53 of the A posts.

As shown in Figs. 4 and '9, the cowl unit is "securely joined at the top to the intermediate unit by means of angle brackets 75 each having one of its arms extending vertically within the hollow Apost and secured thereto as by riveting. This arm is provided with an offset portion to receive'the hinge strap. The horizontal arm overlies the bottom wall of the channel section top rail 76 of the inter-" mediate unit and is secured thereto by rivets and/or welding.

The intermediate units comprise generally the side sills 52 of inwardly presenting channel form, the B-C posts erected thereon,

the top rails 76 secured to the upper ends of the B C Posts the cross braces 77 a'nd7 8 connecting the sills, the front seat supporting framework 79- and the front seat 80.

As hereinbefore described, the side sills extend forwardly into the cowl unit and are I strongly secured thereto. in final assembly.

They extend rearwardly for connection tothe tonneau unit in the region of the']) post as will presently be described. 1,

.The BC posts are of channel form,.the channel presenting inwardly and, as in the case of the A posts, they are secured to the bott'om wal'l of. the sill 52 by laterally extending flanges or tabsSl at front and rear simi lar to the flanges 57 on the A posts. .They

are additionally secured to the sills'by channel brackets 82 nesting within the.lower end of the posts and connected thereto and to the sills in a manner entirely similar to the connection of the channel brackets 58 at the A posts. a The sections of the B-C, posts are clearly indicated in Figs. 18,19, 20 and 21.

v From these figures, it will be seen that the in Fig. 21 to cooperate with a corresponding- -ly shapeddoor railto form dqor stops.-- A.

posts are of decidedly diminished cross section' in their upperportions, thereby afford.

ing a very large range of vision. In their' lower portions they are rabbeted as shown panel strip 83 is applied to the bottom wall 1 of the B6 door posts, the'strip being olfset' outwardly. and spaced from the bottom wall at the center to provide rabbets at'the 1 front and rear sides of said ofit'set,portion,'

which receive the 'door overlaps. For greater strength and neatness the edges of the strip 83 are carried around the rounded front and rear outer corners of theposts. These strips are secured by welding or other-' wise. Near the top of the posts, as shown in 'Figs. 2 and18,the posts are reinforced by a channel shaped brace 84 nested between the front and rear side flanges of the posts and secured thereto.

A very secure joint is provided between the top of the 'BC post and the top rail 76.

To this end, the'bottom wall of the channel top rail is transversely slotted and the side.

walls of the post are provided with. upward extensions 85 fitting said slots, while the bottom of the channel is carried upwardly to overlap the outside wall of the channel top rail 76 and abut the outwardly extending flange 86 at the upper edge of the outer side the bottom of the top rail 76. J I

The front seat structure is supported from' cross braces of inverted channel. section 77 and 78 having the side edges of the channel flanged laterally. directly secured to the sills, as shown in Figs. 2 and 23. They telescope over and are secured to' corresponding inverted channel These channels are not shapedbrackets 89 which have their lateral flanges upwardly offset to permit the ends of the bracket .toenter between the sill flanges into substantial abutting relation to'the bottom wall thereof. 'They are secured tothe sill by riveting the lateral flanges to the lower side flange 61 of'the sill and. by welding or otherwise securing the bottom of the channel to the upper side wall 62 of the sill. The bottom wall of the cross members 77 ,"7 8, when assembled, fit the bottom walls of the brackets 89 and the lateral .flanges of the cross members overlie the laterahflanges ofthe.

Thus, a. construction is provided which insures; .a strong joint between the side sills yet allows brackets and are riveted thereto.

thecross members to bereadily applied,iif. I

desired, after the side units consisting of a sill, B-D post and to rail have beensepa- 'rately assembled in p ace.

The rear cross brace 7 8-is provided at its u per rear edge with a rabbet. to receive the e board for the tonneau section.

Both in advance of. the forward crossmemge of the'floor J ber 7 7 and betweenthe rear cross member 78 and the rear seat heel board, thesills are provided with means for supporting the sides of the flooring. This means has been omitted from most'of the figures of thedrawings showing the sills for the sake of clearness,

. but in .the section of Fi 13, it isclearly shown as comprising a shaped stamping 90 having one arm-of the Z welded to the inside of the top flange 62 of the side sill, the web and the other arm of the Z forming the rabbet. to receive the edge of the floor 77 and 78.

The front seat back is supported from the board. Channel-shaped supporting brack ets, such as 91, are provided at intervals between the Z shaped stamping 90 and the lower side wall 61 of the sill.

The lower seatpan stamping 92 is supported by and secured to the adjacent lateral flanges of the forward and rear cross braces cross braces 77 and 78and the side sills by a substantially rectangular box structure79 the four sides of which are each made out of inwardly presenting channel stampings suitably secured together at .the corners. The channel forming the rear side is of less height than the forward channel and the side, channels ta er from front to rear. The front 'and re r channels of the box structure 7 9'rest on and are secured to the cross braces 77 and 78, res ectively, while the side channels rest on an are secured .to the side sills as appears in Figs. 2 and 23. These channel sides of the box structure 79 are reinforced at front and rear by braces 93 nestingwithin the'channels and arranged at suitably spaced points. The seat back stamping 80 is curved to form the sides and back-of the seat and is provided at the bottom with a flange 94 seated on and secured to, as by welding, the up per sides of the channeled sides of the box structure 79. To form the front .portion of the seat structure, a stamping having a bottom portion 95 in the same plane as the flanges 94 of the seat back and resting on and secured to the top flange of the forwardedges of the seat back'panel abut eachother .as indicated at 97 and are welded together at along the rear edges of the tonneau side win- --dow openings, the post D bracket 101, all of which are interconnected by the tonneauthe lines of juncture.

The tonneau unit includes as principal component elements thereof, the tonneau side sills 98, the tonneau' rear sill 99, the D-posts,

the tonneau side top rails 100, the E posts scopes within the post v tial extent, in fact, almost to its rear edge as appears from the showing in Figs. 3 and 33,-

panelingdesignated generally by theqaefer- I ence numeral 102.

The tonneau side sills 98 are, in the resent embodiment of the invention, of c 'annel cross section, the channel resenting inwardly, as shown in Fig. 3. T e channel has the top side wall 103 and the bottom side wall 104 andhas 'a very much wider web or bottom wall at the front than at. the rear. Thus, the downwardly and. rearwardl inclined top side flanges 103 serve with t 'e similarly inclined top flange 105 of the channel shaped rear cross sill connecting the rear ends qfthe side sills as a rear seat supporting structure.- At the front, the tonneau side sills are 'sponding to the contour of the wheel hous- 80 joined to the post D bracket 101 which comprises an inwardly 'ofi'set portion corre:

ing and a forward edge portion of channel cross section, the channel presenting inwardly. The rear edge of the inwardly ofiset p'ortion of the brlfbket 101 is rearwardly and downwardly inclinedJ At ,its forward end, where the vertical web of the side sill overlaps the rear inclined edge ofthe post D bracket, it is inwardly offset at 106 as shown in Fig. 34 and is welded thereto., The post D bracket is flanged inwardly at 107 along its -lower edge and the lower side wall 104 0 the side sill is extended forwardly beyond the end ofthe vertical web to overlap this flange 107 of the bracket 101' a substantial extent.

These overlapped'parts are securely joined asby welding. The body side sill 52 telebracket' a substanand it (the sill) iscontoured tone'st close within the angle formed by side and bottom flange 107 of said bracket 101. To this end its bottom side wall 61 is offset u wardly where it overlaps the flange 104 an 107 of the tonneau side sill and the post D bracket,

.respectively. These overlapping parts are all securely united by welding to form an exceedingly strong joint at the D post bracket. The forward edge of, the D "post bracket-101, which edge is curved to corre-f spond to the wheel housing and is provided ortion to receive the door overlap is provide at the bottom with a tab or flange 108 which lies against-the outside or bottom wall of the channel sill and is secured thereto byrivets,

with a rabbet in its channel section thereby further securing the joint.

A cross member 109 'of inverted channel shape connects the rearends of the side sills' 52. neau side sills 98 are cutaway as shown at 110, Fig. 3, and are ada ted-to receive a rearfiwardly and downwar 1y extending down-' The upper forward portions of the.ton-' I wardly offset portion 1110f the rearward flange 112 formed at the upper ed of the -,vert 1cal body113'of the heelboa Ofiset portion 111 is inline the flanges 103 and 105 of the side and rear sills, respectively, and thus also serves as a part of the seat supporting structure. (The vertical body portion.

113 of the heel board has rearwardly extend ing flanges 114 which are welded to the vertical webs of the tonneau side sills 98;. From the lower edge'of the vertical portion 113, the heel board is extended forward hori-' zontally as at 115 to provide a support for the flooring, this portion 115 resting on the cross brace 100 and being flanged. down at 116 into the angle formed by the: laterally extending flange Withthe forward wall of the channel cross brace, 109. A transverse angle 'and B- brace116' nests within the an le formed at .the forward edge of the heel oard tosupport the same along the edge. This brace has tabs 116 at its ends welded to the post D brackets whereby to secure it in place.

The D post erected on the post D bracket is, as shown in Figs; 3, 28 and 29, of substantially channeled shape the mouth of the channel presentin inwardly, as. in the case of the A posts. A rabbet is shown formed in the forward outside edge to .receive the door overlap. The forward side wall' 117 of the channel is considerably wider than the rear side-wall 118. Below the belt line, the

. rear side wall isformed with a rearwardly.

" inforced at spaced points by channel 'reinextendingflange 119. The channel is reforcements 120 nested between the sidewalls 117 and 118 and .securedthereto. 'lhese reinforcements may also serve to'secure the interior trim.

- I At the bottom the D post is anchored firmly to the top of the post D bracket 101, the

upper narrow portion of the bracket lying outside the rear portion of the D post and being secured thereto. -Also, the wide forward side wall 117,0f'the D'post is extended downwardly beyondthe bodythereof and bent-to lieagainst and be secured to the forward-side wall of the channel section forward edgesfof the post D bracket. To secure ad ditional' anchorage, a bracket 122 extends between the shoulder 123 formed by the wheel hou'sin'g. offset in the tonneau paneling 102 andthe bottomportion of the D 0st,. This bracket is flanged and secured as y welding at 124 to the shoulder 123.a'nd its opposite end is welded to .the back of the fiange119-of the .D I Fit the topthe D post is securely connected to both the forward top rail 76 and the tonneau' side top rail 100. ,The top rail 74 has its rear end overlying the topof the post and secured thereto by welding, and also by an angle bracket 125 having its vertical arm'- which is offset to accommodate a hinge; strap, secured to the inside surface of the forwardwall of the-post by rivets, and its upper horizontal arm riveted to the. under side of the bottom wall of the channel rail 7 6.

The-tonneau side top rail channel also has a the corresponding rabbet of the portion overlyingbthe post and secured thereto as by welding, t its main portion endsin an abuttin relation to the rear surface ofthe post, and ecause of its deeper channel section, the bottom wall of the channel rail 110 is the channel rail 76. To securethese offset portions to it, a reinforcing stra 126 is provided, this strap having two 0 set channel portions nested, respectively, in the channels of the respective rails and'spot welded thereto.' The portion 127 connecting these oflset portions lies flat against the rear wall of the D. post and is preferably secured thereto to render the joint still more rigid.-

Thertop rail 100 extends rearwardly to the E post which is of channel section in its upofi'set downwardly below-the bottom wall of Y per portion, see Fig. 35, and of angle section in its lower portion, see Fig. 37. he upper end of the E post is connected to the top rail 100 by an angle'brace member 128 having its arms, respectively, lying against the inner surfaces of the bottoms of the channels of top rail and the E post, and welded thereto.

The lower end of the E post is secured to the offset shoulder 123 formed by the wheel housing by an angle bracket 129 having a vertically extendin portion welded to the lower angle shape I widening downward to provide a wide base having its edge conform to the curvature of theshoulder at the edge of the wheel housing and provided with a flange fittings'aid'shoulder and welded thereto.

The tonneau paneling 102 is applied to the end of the E post and tonnea'uframework hereinbefore' described by flanging in the paneling at its lower edges andsecuring it to the side and rear .tonneau sills; .At the D post bracket, which itself forms the outer body surface, the paneling extends over its rear inclined edge merely -sufliciently to make a good lap joint, the parts being welded together along this joint. In

the lower portionof the D post, the tonneau panelin is applied to the outside of the post so as to ave a rabbeted edge portion seated in 0st in a manner similar to the attachment 0 the cowl panel to the A post; Above the beltline, as shown in Fig..28,the paneling 102.is curved inwardly at the rear and then forwardly to form a part of the'window receiving ehanthe formation at the D and E posts and jolned to the bottom wall of the channel provide a part of the window channel, see Fig. 27. t

At the bottom of the side window enings, the paneling is turned inward, see

- and then formed with a downward ofiset edge portion to provide one side and the bottom of the window receiving channel. A reinforcing strip 131 benttback upon itself and having one edge flanged laterally at 132 is brought with this flan ed edge underlying the offset edge portion 0% the anelin and secured thereto. The ends o this remforcing member are provided with flanges 133 and 134 the flangedupper end of a verticalbrace orsu porting member 137. This member is of t e channeled cross section shown in Fig. 31 to-secure great strength and rigidity. Its lower end is flattened out and bent under .and secured to the under side of the rear tonneau s1ll.

An angle-she edcro'ss brace 138 having vertically an horizontally extendin branches is curved to conform to the rear 0 the tonneau-and extends in the region of the belt line of the body,'around from one E post to the'other. The ends of this brace 138 are suitabl secured as by welding the brace throug its vertically extending branch to the E-posts, and its central portion is supported and secured to vertical brace 137 by an angle bracket 139 secured to said brace 137 and the horizontally extending branch of brace 138.

- In the annexed claims I desire to claim all A-post of channel cross section, the channel I presenting inwardly and having its rear wall extending inwardl beyond theforward wall a forwardly extending and provided wit flange at its edge and a panel stampin wrapped around the outer 'and forward si e of the post and extended around the inner posts. This reinforcing strip 131 door overlap receiving rabbet in its outer surface, and a panel stampin having one edge secured in said rabbet an wrap d around the outer and forward walls of fi l 0st and closing the mouth of the channel, t a other edge of the panel being bent back upon itself and secure to the forwardly extending flange of saidv rear channel sidewall.

.3. In a pressed metal automobile body, a body post of inwardly presenting channel formation, and a top rail of channel formation supported thereby, the top rail being slotted to receive upward extensions of the side walls of the channel of the 0st and the outer bottom wall of the channe 0st bein extended upwardly to overlap and secure to the outside wall of the channel of the top" rail. 1

4. In a pressed metal automobile body a body post of hollow formation having certain of its walls extended u wardly to form short projections a top rai of angle formation having its main web slot-ted to receive said.

projections, and a reinforcing member over lyingsaid projections and secured to the main web of the ,top rail on opposite sides of said 0st. I

5. n a vehicle body, a pressed metal A- 'post of inwardly presenting channel section, and a unitary ane'l strip stagnpin covering the forward si e and the bottom o? the channel and extending across the open mouth of the same, the ortion extending across the open mouth oft e channel being formed with a rabbet to receive the edge of a windshield.

body side .post located between door openformation, the channel presenting inwardly and having a substantlally flat bottom in transverse section, and a relatively light gauge panel strip forming a finish and havmg a central portion and side portions offset from each other to form rabbets to receive the door. ed e overlaps, the strip being seated" a ainst t e outside surface of the flat bottom 0 the channel of the postand havin the side portions wra ped around the roun ed 'ed s of the post w ere the bottom joins the si es. In testimony whereof he hereunto aflixes his signature.

' JOSEPH nEDwI'N A.

side to close the mouth of the channel, the

inner edge of said stampingbeing turned back upon itself to form a reinforced and smooth-finished edge and secured to the forwardly extending edge flange of the post.

2. Ina pressed metalautomobilefbody, an A-post of channel cross section, the channel resenting inwardly and having its rear wall orwardly flanged at its-edge and havinga 6. In an automobile body, a pressedmetalv ings, the main body of which is of channel- 

